Place the smoker on a level, solid surface. If using it on the porch, it is advisable to place the whole appliance in a drip pan. This should catch all grease drippings and falling ashes, as well as shield the floor from any damage.

Lighting the Charcoal

Great caution is advised when using charcoal lighting fluid to light your charcoal, and not only because of the chemical fumes it gives off.

And once the charcoal is lit it is just plain dangerous to pour any gasoline on a flame. Very.

Your safest bet when it comes to lighting charcoal is to utilize a charcoal chimney. It is not expensive, but it can make your life a whole lot easier.

Working With The Smoker

Once you have lit the charcoal, you should not be moving the unit around. There is just too much risk of injury on hot metal surfaces, or of capsizing the entire appliance with its cargo of flaming charcoal.

You should never leave the smoker unattended, for whatever reason. If you have any kids or pets about the house, all the more reason to keep a keen watch on things.

Wear sensible, safe clothing around your smoker. Don't wear any loose-hanging garments or a tie that might get caught in the appliance or the flames. A good cover-all and heat-resistant

Never use gasoline, kerosene or any kind of alcohol on burning charcoal. There is a very real danger of the canister exploding in your hands, or some uncontrolled flare-up from the flames.

Flare-Ups

A supposed benefit that a water pan offers is to keep the ambient air in the smoking chamber moist. But if the water dries up and grease falls into the pan, there is the risk of the grease catching fire. So keep an eye on the water level. Needless to say, take great care when refilling the pan.

A 'bullet' charcoal smoker like the Weber Smokey Mountain can be used for grilling. Once again, there is a risk of a flare-up from grease falling on the coals. Closing the lid should smother the flames.

Apart from the normal precautions, like using a pair of BBQ mitts, always remember to open the lid away from your face. Open it slowly, first cracking it open slightly, to avoid a flare-up due to a sudden influx of air.

Adding Charcoal

For lengthy barbecues you will occasionally need to replenish the charcoal, flavoring wood, or water. You will want to take great care during this process, remembering to open the lid away from your face and wear mitts.

For a vertical smoker, you will need to move the meat aside in order to pour water down into the pan. If two grates are used, you will need to remove the top grate first, before moving meat on the lower grate aside.

Follow the manufacturer's instructions closely, for the particular appliance model you are using.

Side note:The art of using flavoring wood is very much an acquired skill. Each barbecue master will have his own preference for how long a cut of meat should be smoked. Jeff Phillips, of﻿Smoking-Meat.com﻿, considers it OK to smoke with wood that has a lighter flavor, such as pecan, peach, apricot, plum and alder, throughout the cooking time. For medium to heavy flavored wood, such as mesquite, hickory, walnut, oak and cherry, he recommends using smoke only until the meat temperature has reach 140 degrees, as determined by your ﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿meat thermometer﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿. Thereafter, cook only with heat.

After-Action Satisfaction

The charcoal will be hot long after your meal has been cooked, so the risk of injuries from the hot surfaces of the smoker as well as the ashes remains. For this reason, you should not leave the smoker unattended during this cooling-down phase. You should also not handle the appliance during this time.

Hose down the area of the smoker to fully extinguish any ashes that may have made it to the ground. You may extinguish the ashes in the smoker also by dowsing them with water, but this is discouraged by certain manufacturers, for fear of spoiling the finish of the smoker.

Place the ashes in a metal container, dowse with water (if you have not done so yet) and let it stand for 24 hours at a safe distance before disposing in a safe manner.

In Closing

Safety is paramount. You don't want to spoil the party by incurring serious injury from direct heat or inhaling toxic fumes, or even letting your property go up in flames.

Always bear in mind that you are working with dangerously hot surfaces and fuel, and take appropriate care. Common sense will go a long way, but rather be safe than sorry.